Axor Massaud Lav Faucet Earns Top Honors In Woman's Day Specials' 2008 KB Awards Newest Axor collection also recognized by Architectural Record's 2007 Product Reports and receives a Good Design Award from the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design.

ALPHARETTA, GEORGIA (FEBRUARY 14, 2008) — The Axor Massaud faucet won top honors in the "Faucets" category in the fifth annual KB Awards, sponsored by Woman's Day Specials Kitchens & Baths magazine. The product was cited for its "bold, yet simple styling" by associate editor Bill Partsch, one of the three judges in the 2008 competition. "Water cascades from the front edge of the elegant chrome plane, turning the basic act of hand washing into a luxe experience."

The faucet is the signature piece of the 60-item Axor Massaud bath collection, created exclusively for Hansgrohe's designer brand by the French designer and architect Jean-Marie Massaud. Constructed of solid brass, the faucet offers a polished chrome finish with a state-of-the-art ceramic cartridge designed specifically for this collection. The uniquely styled faucet offers these other distinctive features:

• Asymmetrical, expansive shelf-like surface, measuring nearly 16 inches wide (photo right).
• Waterfall-like cascade, originating at the edge of the "shelf."
• Elegant, user-friendly "joystick" lever for controlling water flow and temperature.
• Slim faucet base that bends upward into a slight curve, reminiscent of a tall blade of grass.

Axor Massaud Bath Collection

The new Axor Massaud bath collection encompasses an array of fully coordi-nated components and accessories. These include washbasin and bidet faucets; tub spouts and fillers; showerheads, handshowers, bodysprays and shower controls; and an assortment of accessories, including towel bars, toilet paper holder, toilet brush, and even a candleholder, cosmetic box and flower vase.

The collection embodies this designer's organic approach to product design and his celebration of the simplicity and beauty of nature, according to Axor brand manager Philippe Grohe. "For Jean-Marie, the feelings and needs of the indivi-dual are always the focus in his work. His fascination with modern man's quest for an elemental connection to what is essential and natural is mirrored in Axor Massaud – a symbiosis between nature, man and the space in which he lives."

Established in 2004, the KB Awards pay special tribute to "outstanding designs" in recently introduced bath and kitchen products. Joining Partsch as judges in this year's contest were Arthur Tanturri of Chelsea Fine Custom Kitchens in New York and Kitchens & Baths editor Leslie Plummer Clagett, who wrote in the magazine's latest issue (Volume XVIII, No. 1): "Try to image how having one or more of these forward-thinking products in your home could change not only how your bath and kitchen looks, but how it lives."

Additional Honors for Axor Massaud in 2007
Architectural Record's Product Reports: The 35th Annual Product Reports, featured in the December 2007 issue of Architectural Record magazine, included the Axor Massaud faucet among 300 of "the year's most innovative new building products." The faucet was one of eight new items in the "Plumbing, HVAC & Special Construction" section of the competition.

Noting that designer Jean-Marie Massaud "aimed to make the plumbing recede" in his new collection, the editors wrote of Axor Massaud: "Thus organically sculpted single-lever basin and bath mixers appear to be – indeed double as – shelves. Water delivery mimics the clarity of nature while keeping its use at bay."

A six-person jury of architects and designers, all of whom are based in New York City, selects items for recognition. The 2007 Product reports jury included Leslie Gill of Leslie Gill Architect; Eric Bunged, AIA of nARCHITECTS; K. Brett Malak, director of lighting design for Cosentini Lighting Design; Jacob Alspector, principal of his eponymous full-service architecture and interiors firm; Charles Renfro, AIA of Diller Scofidio + Renfro; and Christian P. Arkay-Leliever, director of products for Rockwell Architecture.

Good Design Award: The Axor Massaud faucet received a 2007 Good Design Award from the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design. Founded in Chicago in 1950 by architects Eero Saarinen, Charles and Ray Eames, and Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., Good Design bestows international recognition upon the world's most prominent designers and manufacturers for advancing new, visionary, and innovative product concepts, invention and originality, and for stretching the envelope beyond what is considered basic product and consumer design.

"The criteria for award selection follows the original, historic Good Design program, which is based on function and aesthetic, but with a contemporary emphasis for environmental concerns and Green Design," states museum president Christian K. Narkiewicz-Laine, who organized and curated this year's program.

About Hansgrohe: Founded in 1901, Hansgrohe established luxury and quality standards for the upscale shower, kitchen and bath. The company is one of the world's largest suppliers of showerheads and continuously introduces innovative products that exhibit imagination and the highest degree of performance and quality. With headquarters in Schiltach, Germany, Hansgrohe serves customers in over 80 countries through 24 subsidiaries and nine manufacturing facilities around the globe.

About Axor: Hansgrohe's high-end designer brand offers a wide array of highly distinctive bath collections (faucets, showers and accessories) as well as kitchen faucets, developed exclusively for the brand by internationally renowned designers such as Antonio Citterio (Milan and Hamburg), Philippe Starck (Paris and London), and Phoenix Design (Stuttgart and Tokyo). These unique collections inspire consumers and their designers to create individualized bath solutions and spatial visions. Philippe Grohe, the 40-year-old grandson of company founder Hans Grohe, heads the Axor brand.

For more information on Axor Massaud, contact:
John O'Reilly
LNC Communications
32 West Nebraska Street, Suite 1C
Frankfort, Illinois 60423
Telephone: 815-469-9100, extension 13; Fax: 815-469-2555
E-mail: John@LNCmail.com

You can also visit www.axor-design.com or www.hansgrohe-usa.com or telephone 800-334-0455.